Day by Day
by Aesyl
Summary: Snippets of Yumi's life before, during, and after the Saki anime series. There's no chronological order.
1. Chapter 1

Forgive me. I just wanted a side project that would take care of my other writer's urges (plot bunnies? I'm unfamiliar with this stufff...).

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**01. I just wanted someone to notice me.**

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"Yumi-chin, wait up!" Kanbara's voice rang out through the school hallway.

A few first years stepped closer to the walls nervously as the girl hurtled by, but the rest were used to it by now. The senior with short red hair was known for being energetic and friendly, and rarely had she ever caused any accidents.

Yumi merely stopped and took a step to the side, allowing other students to pass by her. She had already reached the school entrance and was one foot-length away from exiting the building. She turned around to face the inside of the school and waited. A shock of red hair and a wide grin should be appearing any moment now.

"Wahahaha. You never waste a second, do you? By the time I left the classroom, you already had your shoes and coat on!"

Yumi gave a small smile, knowing her friend meant nothing by the comments.

"I'm afraid I don't have the social grace that you do, Kanbara, so I thought I'd let you handle the rest."

The mahjong club president hurriedly went to her shoe locker and changed into her outdoor shoes, talking while she did so and waving to those that she knew passing by.

"Ah, man! It's easier on me if you just tell me to hurry up. I feel like a bad friend when I let you walk home alone."

"We walk home together everyday. There's no harm doing things differently once in a while," she stated rationally, but her friend made an annoyed face.

"Friendship is important, and I don't want to make you feel like I take you for granted," Kanbara insisted as they made their way past the school gates.

Yumi blinked once in surprise, but otherwise her expression remained as neutral as ever. "I see."

"Kajiki-san," a voice called out from behind them. Both girls turned to look behind them.

Yumi recognized the approaching figure as one of her classmates, but she couldn't quite remember the name. It was barely on the tip of her tongue, but she had been so wrapped up in mentally going over the day's lessons and conversing with Kanbara (the latter of which had become second nature to her at this point), that she had to struggle to place it.

"Aya... -san, was it? I'm sorry, but what can I help you with?" She asked politely as Kanbara watched the two of them with friendly curiosity.

The girl facing the two of them seemed upset, but not enough to warrant tears. If anything, she seemed as if she was restraining herself from bursting in anger or... disappointment? Yumi was having trouble reading the emotions on her face. This was why she disliked associating with other students; they were always dishonest and emotional.

"Y-You didn't keep our promise! Did you even remember what I wrote in your shoe locker this morning?" Aya's voice accused, a slight tremor of hurt evident.

Yumi blinked again, indeed recalling a letter in her shoe locker that morning, but she had assumed it was some sort of prank or an outburst of teenage hormones that she didn't think anything of it and promptly recycled it. That was careless of her, but then, that had never happened to her before. Who would take notice of her, the plain class representative?

"I apologize, but I don't recall making a promise. Is there something I can do to make it up to you?"

It occurred to her that she could be falling into a trap where the girl would ask something outrageous of her, or twist things to make her seem the fool, but those things were unlikely. She was a normal girl with a normal family. She had no particular connections; only a decent work ethic and minimal social skills. If possible, she didn't want any unnecessary tension between her and her classmates.

"My... My feelings... return them to me! It's not like I want to feel this way, you know!"

At this, Yumi faltered in utter confusion. She was making less and less sense. Or maybe Yumi misunderstood the situation entirely? She took a quick glance at Kanbara, but her friend's small smirk wasn't very encouraging.

"I... What? Maybe we should go somewhere to talk things over. Clearly I've misunderstood something." When things go wrong, always be the first to apologize and make a rational offer. At the very least, it will make the other party seem petty and foolish.

The other girl turned bright red and began stuttering.

"I-I can't d-do that! It's t-too emb-b-arassing!"

Gone was the aggressive girl, replaced by a shy and demure little lamb. The sudden transformation made Yumi want to simultaneously laugh and shake her head in exasperation. Teenagers were truly dishonest.

She placed what she thought was a disarming smile on her face and walked forward, resting a hand on Aya's shoulder bracingly. When the other person was down, it was time to build back their self-confidence and make them see things your way.

"Then what do you propose we do? Being angry at me means that I've failed my duty as a class representative, and I want to help you. Will you please tell me how?"

"I... I can't! Forgive me!" The other girl ripped herself away from Yumi's grip and ran in the opposite direction, leaving the two friends alone on an otherwise empty street.

"Wahahahaha! That was amazing, Yumi-chin! I thought you said you were bad with people, but you practically made that girl melt at your feet!"

The purple-haired girl turned to look Kanbara in the eye. "I feel like someone just shoved me into a shoujo manga."


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Last chapter's title was "said" by Yumi for ironic effect.

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**02. Stealth

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**The door to the shared apartment opened and closed swiftly in an effort to keep out the cold winter air. The sound of a plastic bag rustling could be heard amidst the unzipping of a coat and the stamping of boots. A voice called out into the rest of the apartment from the entrance.

"Hey, Yumichin! I brought those onions you needed. Damn, it's cold out there. I think we're going to get hit by a blizzard tonight."

"Ah, really? We should be fine. The pizza's in the oven, so we have a little bit of time. Want to help me clean up?"

Kanbara peeked her head into the kitchen area where Yumi was making pizza and saw that there was quite a bit of flour on the floor, as well as on the countertops. A few bowls lying around were filled with toppings, and Yumi herself had some flour the hair near her ears. She must have tried to tuck some strands behind her ear without paying attention. It was funny to see her normally neat friend looking even the slightest bit disheveled. Of course, her apron was spotless, so that ruined the effect.

"It looks like the flour bag exploded. What happened?" Kanbara asked curiously.

"Our counters aren't exactly big enough for this sort of thing, so some of the flour spilled over. It should turn out fine, though. We're just waiting for the dough to bake a little and the cheese to melt. Here's a broom; I'll take care of the counters," Yumi stated, passing a broom to her friend.

"Wahaha. It's not that bad. We could always wait until after we've finished eating to clean up," she suggested amiably.

"We have nothing better to do at the moment, so we might as well. Besides, it's your turn to clean up. Isn't it less work for you this way?"

The purple-haired girl began washing a few things in the sink, adding the sounds of quiet clinking and scrubbing to Kanbara's fast sweeping. The heat emanating from the oven coupled with the sweet smell of tomatoes being baked made the cheap apartment almost feel like a home that's been lived in for years.

"Wahaha. I can't disagree with that. Well, all done, boss. What's next?"

Kanbara leaned against a free wall expectantly, already itching to try Yumi's pizza. It wasn't often the serious girl would make something casual like this. Usually she wanted to make some exotic foreign recipe from Europe or South America, so it was nice to have something simple once in a while. There was less of a chance she'd screw it up, for one thing.

Yumi turned after drying her hands on a towel and grabbed a pair of oven mitts.

"Toppings. Here, take these onions and sprinkle them on after I take out the tray. I can get the rest."

The redhead blinked. "Onions? When did you chop those?"

"When you were playing Flour Monster Invasion with the broom," Yumi deadpanned.

"Wahaha. You saw that, did you? Man, I feel embarrassed. Okay, all set."

Yumi finished her part of the toppings and slid the tray back in the oven, wiping her forehead with the back of her hand when she finished. She untied her apron easily and folded it, placing it on a clean countertop.

"All right. Want some tea while we wait? Just sit in the other room while I grab the cups and leaves. The hot water should be ready by now," Yumi instructed.

"Yes ma'am," Kanbara mock-saluted, doing as she said.

Their shared apartment wasn't particularly big. It was on the second floor of a two-story apartment building. There was a kitchen, which connected to the tatami-covered living room (which had a bookshelf, a table, a television, and few cushions). There was a counter that separated those two areas, with three bar stools on one side. There was a simple bathroom that had a toilet and a sink, but no actual bath. The nearby bathhouse was enough for that. They washed their clothes in the machines downstairs, which was where the apartment building residents all washed their clothes. They only had one bedroom, which Yumi insisted that Kanbara occupy. She herself slept in the living room at night, and kept her belongings in the closet. Neither of them brought much with them to begin with, so life was mostly simple and uncomplicated for them.

"Think you'll be okay tomorrow morning?" Kanbara asked her friend over the table in the living room. Her tea was still hot, so she merely swirled the cup a few times as she watched the steam dissipate.

Yumi, however, had no such problems. She sipped her tea without any apparent notice of the temperature.

"With any luck. It's still our first year here, so I don't know how this area takes care of snow. Hopefully the city officials decide that the roads should be clean early enough for me to walk to class on time. Do you think we'll have enough time to get to the bathhouse and back before the blizzard hits?"

"Maybe," the redhead answered doubtfully. "Let's check the weather channel. I'm glad my classes are in the afternoon. The roads would definitely be clear by then."

"Mm," Yumi agreed noncommittally as she focused on the television, which Kanbara switched on.

The oven ding'd not long afterwards, and they both moved towards it before Kanbara motioned the purple-haired girl to stay seated. She made a few trips to the kitchen, coming back with plates, something heat-resistant to put underneath the tray, a knife, and the tray itself.

Yumi blinked. "It looks good."

"Wahaha. Is that something the cook should be saying about her own food?"

"It's been a while since I made this, and last time was with Momo. She gave me the recipe before we graduated, so I've been meaning to try it out. I wasn't sure if I could do it, though. I've never been good in the kitchen; she was the one who did most of it," Yumi explained in a rush, her cheeks tinged with a very faint blush.

"Ah..." Kanbara wasn't sure how to reply to that. Clearly the younger girl had been on her friend's mind all this time, but neither of them ever brought it up. The two seemed to treat graduation as their final goodbye, but Kanbara couldn't understand why. She never asked, though, as her friend seemed to know what she was doing, and it wasn't her place to lecture. Maybe this was a good time to casually poke at the topic, though. Yumi seemed to be in a good mood.

"She's graduating next year, isn't she?"

"With Kaori, yes," Yumi agreed.

Kanbara couldn't read her friend's tone or expression at all. She tried again.

"Mu-ki's president now. I wonder how all of them are doing... Kaori said they had one more member join up, but it wasn't enough for the team tournament this summer."

"Really? I hope that didn't stop them from competing in the singles tournament, at least."

Kanbara looked up from the pizza slice she was eating. "Why do you sound so surprised? I would have thought that you'd keep in touch with our little princess, at least." She gestured to the slice, "This is really good, by the way. I didn't think she was interested in cooking."

"We... haven't talked much since then. We've both been busy with school, and high school's a really important time to take care of your grades," Yumi explained hesitantly.

The redhead wanted to sigh. It looks like both of them were just being stupidly shy.

"Well, I won't yell at you or anything, but friends are friends no matter where you are or what you're doing. You should invite her over for dinner sometime. I'm sure she'd be surprised at how much you cook these days."

"That's not really something I can show off. It's just a hobby, and a lot of what I try to make tends to turn out wrong," her friend began to ramble.

Kanbara took a chance and threw out a theory that she'd been chewing on for a while. "The real reason you even started it was because it reminded you of her, right?"

"H-How did you know that?!" Yumi's face had flushed a dark red in embarrassment, but she pretended not to notice.

"You should tell her that when you invite her. It'd make her feel less lonely. She probably thinks of you just as much," she advised kindly. "Besides, it's not like she's in her third year with her entrance exams and everything. She has a bit of free time. If you're really worried about her grades, you could always tutor her. I don't mind having her here. She's my friend, too. It's better than leaving her at home where her family barely notices her, right?"

"Ah... You're right."

Kanbara could practically see the relief spread across her friend's normally stiff shoulders.

"So, this weekend is fine, right? I already texted her about it and she's free. She sounded happy that you used her recipe for this," she said with a guileless smile.

Yumi's eyes widened. "Wh-When did you-?"

"Just now. You were busy looking anywhere but at me, so I thought it'd be a good chance," Kanbara explained plainly.

Her friend let out a frustrated groan and looked like she wanted to bury her head in her hands, but they were covered in pizza grease so all she could do was look at her friend across the table helplessly. She sighed after a moment and took another bite out of the pizza.

"Hm. You're right. This really si good."

Kanbara grinned. "See? I told you."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** Can anyone else spot how much Yumi has grown?

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**03. Formalities**

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As Yumi walked down the street, her navy umbrella opened above her, she thought of how much her first day at her new high school could have been worse. She could have become friends with any one of the girls who squealed as they ran through the rain with nothing to protect them except their blazers and their schoolbags. She could have forgotten to bring her umbrella. She could have volunteered to become the class representative, and be forced to babysit her 30 classmates without any particular reward. She could have been picked on by the upperclassmen. Really, any number of things could have happened, but they didn't.

Well, of course they didn't. She made sure they didn't. If you prepare yourself properly and adapt to the situation, no matter how strange or unfamiliar, there's no reason you should come out at the bottom.

Although, as far as all-girls' schools went, Tsuruga Academy was fairly unremarkable. The teachers were all middle-aged and serious, the building somewhat new but not particularly interesting, the uniforms functional and low-key, the clubs were passionate but few and far between, and the curriculum and students were what you'd expect to find in any school, if a little more biased towards the maths and sciences. It could have been worse.

Her assigned seat had been one of the treasured few that was next to the windows. If she were anyone else, she'd suspect that she'd be happy to be blessed with such good luck, but as she looked out into the rainy day, it was hard to feel anything but boredom and a sense of detachment. The homeroom teacher, as well as the other teachers, had said nothing that she hadn't heard before. It was all a formality. As long as you did your work, showed respect, and attended classes, no one had any reason to disturb you. One or two students had been absent today, of course, but she was hardly surprised. It was expected that a few people would oversleep or purposely choose to skip a day that was largely dedicated to formalities.

Yumi was still trying to convince herself that she should be happy that things weren't as bad as they could be when she finally reached her modest house. As she opened the door and shook out her umbrella, she could see her father's shoes in the entryway. It looked like he was home for the moment. He was probably just picking up some food before heading back to the police office for the rest of the night.

"Father, the rain's getting worse. You might want to wear your raincoat tonight," she called out from the entryway, peeking her head around the corner into the living room area.

Her parents were leaning over the dining room table with today's newspaper spread over it. Her father was gesturing to one of the articles seriously as her mother listened gravely. Her face was tensing up as if to begin an argument, but she saw Yumi from across the room and her shoulders dropped. Her father still had his back turned, but stopped talking once he heard her voice call out to him.

'Yumi, welcome home," her mother said warmly, already heading to the kitchen to make a cup of tea.

"Glad I could see you before heading off. There's an important case that we've got to wrap up soon, otherwise the media will be all over us like dogs," he explained wearily. The lines on his stern face seemed deeper than ever, and for a moment Yumi remembered herself tracing them curiously when she was younger, her parents laughing at her innocence. She didn't know the burdens of society and duty back then.

"Thank you for all of your hard work," she said sincerely. She knew her father was doing it for his family's sake, and it was quite possible that he was putting himself in harm's way unnecessarily because he couldn't trust someone else to keep their city safe.

He reddened faintly at his daughter's quiet support. She saw her mother trying to hide her smile as the woman came out of the kitchen, placing a cup of hot tea at the table and refilling her husband's cup. Yumi sat down and skimmed over the newspaper article, despite already knowing what it said, having read it earlier that morning.

"How is the school?" Her mother asked curiously.

Yumi blinked, having forgotten about it after seeing her parents on the verge of having another argument the moment she walked into the room. She struggled for an adequate description that wouldn't make her sound disappointed or contemptuous.

"How...How do you like it?" Her father repeated his wife's question, albeit with more uncertainty in his voice than she was used to hearing. But then, he was the one who pushed her to attend that particular academy, after all. It was considered one of the better schools in the area, and she knew he felt relieved about her attending an all-girls' school.

"It's as much as I expected," she replied neutrally. "The teachers are sensible and the students more or less behave the way they should." She bit her tongue before she could say, _It could have been worse._

"Ah, I'm glad you like it," her father said, his mind already back on work. Yumi wanted to sigh, but it was better this way, she supposed. Her mother probably caught on to her phrasing, however, but she was too tactful to bring it up in front of her husband.

"I'll be leaving now," he finally said, folding up the newspaper neatly and replacing it back on the table. He gripped his daughter's shoulder bracingly and gave his wife an almost-perfunctory kiss on the cheek. He left quietly with his packed dinner in hand, his refilled cup of tea still untouched.

Her mother took a seat across the table from her once they heard the door shut. She looked a little stressed and frustrated, but forced her face to relax as she looked at her daughter appraisingly. Yumi wanted to sigh once more. She looked the same as she ever did, with the exception of the new uniform. Entering high school changed nothing except her coarse work.

"I'm proud of you, you know," she said seriously.

Yumi nodded, taking a sip of her tea. "Yes. Thank you, mother."

"Did you want anything special for dinner tonight?"

She blinked. Even her normally unfazed parents seemed to be caught up in all the ceremony that came with entering high school. She thought they'd be more sensible than that.

Yumi shook her head. "Anything's fine. We didn't go over anything of importance today. They were mostly checking to see how far everyone had gotten in their previous schools."

She didn't add that she was far ahead of everyone else due to boredom at her previous school. There was no need to boast to her own parents, or anyone else, for that matter.

Her mother nodded absently. "We'll have some _sukiyaki_ then, since it's so rainy and cold tonight."

"Okay. Did we need anything from the store? I can hurry before the rain gets worse," Yumi offered. She just wanted an excuse to be in the rain, honestly, but she daren't tell her mother that, even on a good day. She'd be accused of wanting to catch a cold just to be rebellious.

"No, that's all right. I already have all of the ingredients," her mother explained.

"Ah." She should have expected that. Her mother was always one step ahead of any situation.

"Did you want me to he-" she began, but her mother cut her off.

"Don't be silly. Just sit there and enjoy your tea," her mother insisted. "Besides, there's still some time before we should eat. You can head upstairs if you'd like. If you're bored, you can always help me clean the bathroom."

Somehow, she felt like her mother was purposely keeping her away from the kitchen at all costs. Yumi mentally shrugged and finished her tea. She went to her room to change and decided to clean the bathroom. Her mother was probably joking, but she didn't feel like reading right then, or watching television. Many of her books were mystery or detective novels, and she didn't want to be reminded of that right now. The television programs would be worse, of course; being only game shows or dramas.

The truth was, she hated high school. It reminded her that they were supposed to be ready to become adults, but everyone always insisted on behaving as if they were still little children with no responsibilities or connection to the real world at all, while people like her father were risking their lives just so they can laugh and criticize the adults that made their happiness possible. It was more saddening than frustrating, but she'd found that both emotions were fairly unproductive. She'd take care of her responsibilities and change things once she had the resources. All she had to do was get to the top.

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The air still smelled a little damp that morning as Yumi left her house to attend her second day of classes. She could feel the heat from her freshly made packed lunch escaping from the edge of her schoolbag. Her mother insisted on making it this morning, despite the extra work it gave her. She really wished her mother would just let herself sleep in; rest would hardly increase her stress.

As she made her way up one of the paved hills, she saw a few other students with her same uniform walking the same way. One in particular seemed to be in a rush, running as hard as she could with a spot of red jam on her face. Yumi stared as the girl blazed by the rest of the students, including herself, eventually slowing down and leaning against a fence a little ahead of the purple-haired girl.

Yumi was intent on ignoring the girl as she passed, but a bit of curiosity betrayed her and she glanced sideways to see if the girl was okay. This bit of curiosity was her undoing, of course, as the girl grabbed onto Yumi's sleeve and looked up with a weary grin. Yumi nearly stepped back in surprise, but kept herself steady and merely blinked, waiting for the other girl to talk.

"Hey there. You're... a first year, right? You were there yesterday?" She asked hesitantly.

Yumi nodded, wondering why the sudden nervousness after grabbing a complete stranger. Maybe this was an upperclassman. So much for being left alone by them. Maybe there was something unusual at Tsuruga after all. Some sort of disease that affected the students only after they've completed a year of schooling there. Her mind began to formulate all sorts of ridiculous theories in the face of this strange girl. Actually, now that she took a closer look, the girl's hair was rather unusual as well. It was as if someone took a large bowl, placed it over her head, and cut off everything beneath it, then curling the left and right ends to face upwards. It was almost like a bell.

The girl gave a sigh of relief after seeing Yumi's nod and straightened up, releasing the sleeve. Yumi quickly placed her hand inside her blazer's pocket, hoping to avoid a repeat of the incident.

"What luck! I missed yesterday, you see, because my little brother suddenly came down with a really bad fever and we had to rush him to the hospital while my dad was at work. It was a crazy day. I started running to school this morning because I thought I was late, but then I ran out of energy before I realized that they probably wouldn't care if I was late after missing yesterday, right?"

Yumi blinked at the sudden exposition but nodded in agreement as they started walking together. Why was this girl walking with her?

"Anyway, I wanted to ask if I missed anything yesterday. Ah, wait, we might not even be in the same class... Hold on, where was it?" The girl checked her pockets before taking out a neatly folded scrap of paper with something scrawled on it.

"Got it! Let's see... 1-C. Are you in 1-C?" She asked hopefully.

Yumi felt a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach as she agreed wordlessly. She closed her eyes for a moment, mentally preparing a quick outline of yesterday's events before giving it to the other girl, whose name she didn't even know yet. It was the "yet" part that horrified her the most, as this girl was likely to become her first _friend_ at Tsuruga, whether she consented or not. There went her hopes of a peaceful high school life.

"...and I believe one of the absentees were assigned the role of class representative. I believe her family name was... Kanbaru?" Yumi explained, unsure of the exact name.

The other girl had nodded along quietly as Yumi talked, but she gave a rueful smile at the name. "It couldn't be 'Kanbara', could it?"

"Ah, that's certainly possible," the serious girl supposed unhelpfully.

"Wahaha. Talk about bad luck. Well, it's nice to meet you. I'm Kanbara Satomi, your class representative, I guess," she introduced herself with a grin. "I get the feeling I won't have to worry about you handing in your homework late or skipping classes."

_What a weird laugh_, Yumi thought. "Kajiki Yumi. I don't think the teachers will buy your excuse for skipping yesterday," she warned, somehow feeling less threatened by the girl's easygoing personality.

"It's fine if they don't," she shrugged. "I have a note from one of the doctor's from the hospital, and they should have called anyway to notify them. I'll just have to work twice as hard to prove that I'm not that unreliable."

Yumi felt a little bad for doubting her. Maybe not everyone her age was as irresponsible as they seemed.

"By the way, what does your father work as?" Yumi asked impulsively.

"Mine? Oh, he's a detective. He's kind of obsessed with it, really. It makes for a bad father, but it's not like he doesn't try. He's just... really awkward with kids. Wahaha. I end up taking care of my brother and sister more often than not, but they're good kids, so it's not hard," she explained cheerfully.

"I... I see," Yumi said. In some ways, it seemed they were more similar than she would have expected.

"Hey!" Kanbara suddenly exclaimed. "Why don't we join a club together?"

Yumi stumbled, but quickly regained her balance. "I... I wasn't planning on joining one."

"Really? It could be fun, even though I haven't checked to see what clubs we have to begin with," she said optimistically.

"The student council might have a list of available clubs, and I'm sure they'll be scouting for new members very soon," Yumi said.

"It'd be cool to become president of a club, don't you think?"

"It could be a lot of stress," Yumi warned.

"Maybe," Kanbara agreed, "but I think it'd be worth it. Let's search out a club to join during lunch!"

"All... All right," she agreed hesitantly. It was hard not to be pulled along by this girl's enthusiasm, but she didn't seem like such a bad person after all. "But shouldn't we formally request to sit-in at one of their meetings first, instead of just... appearing?"

Kanbara seemed to think this over for a moment. "Well, that's true, but they might just be staging something for us so that we'd join. I'd rather see how they usually are instead of how they want us to see them. Formalities are just for show, aren't they?"

"That's true." Yumi had never agreed with anything more in her life.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** Thank you very much for reading and leaving reviews. Yes, I like my original characters eccentric.

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**04. Mahjong for Four

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**Yumi knocked once on the club door before letting herself in. She was unsurprised to see that the club president was already there, while Kanbara was not. The former was typing away furiously at her laptop, and Yumi had a sneaking suspicion that it had little to do with the Mahjong Club. Sadly, that made up the entirety of their club. If they didn't get at least two more members this year, it'd mean missing the summer mahjong tournament once again.

"Aki-sempai," Yumi greeted, closing the door behind her. "The first years are starting classes today. It might be a good idea to let them know that we're interested in accepting new members."

"Ah, Yumi-chin!" The president looked up quickly from her screen to flash her a smile before focusing back on her laptop. "Yes, yes, do what you need to do. I need to get ready for the student council elections. That silly fool Sakurako isn't going to be elected president three years in a row if I can help it!"

The purple-haired girl was saved from having to reply by Kanbara's entrance, which wasn't as noisy as one would expect from such an energetic girl.

"Morning, Yumi-chin, Aki-sempai," she greeted cheerily, sitting down in one of the many empty chairs of the room. "Still working on your speech?"

"No," the third year disagreed. "I'm designing the posters now. Kids these days are attracted to pretty things and not much else, and since I'm not the walking glitterbomb that Sakurako is, I'm afraid that more effort needs to be put in these posters than my stance on the issues."

Yumi raised her eyebrows slightly. "It sounds like you're talking from experience, sempai."

"Don't remind me," Aki groaned and ran a frustrated hand through her shoulder-length brown hair, threatening to knock off her glasses with the movement.

"Wahaha. I knew she'd be like this, so I took the initiative and put a few posters around the school. I can't say much about how attractive they look. There was only so much my siblings and I could do to make mahjong tiles look exciting, you know," Kanbara apologized with a shrug.

"Good job, Mi-tan!" Aki praised, giving the younger girl a quick thumbs up from behind the screen.

"Wahaha."

"_Mi-tan?"_ Yumi echoed in confusion. As if her own nickname wasn't weird enough. Not that Kanbara's easygoing acceptance of it was any more normal, either.

"Yeah, I thought of it just now. I've been trying to figure out a name for her since last year, but 'Satomi' isn't exactly an easy name to shorten cutely," their president explained all too rationally.

"Sounds fine to me," the girl in question agreed. "Do we want to try playing three-player mahjong again while we wait for someone to join?"

Aki laughed and almost instantaneously replied, "No."

"No," Yumi similarly disagreed. While she enjoyed the hidden complexities of mahjong, struggling futilely against the insane rules of three-player mahjong was the last thing she wanted to do today.

"Wahahaha. It's not that bad," she said with a grin before changing the topic. "Anyway, Yumi-chin, want to go try to scout the first years personally? You're the more professional-looking of the three of us, so I think you'd have the most success at attracting new members."

"I resent that, Mi-tan," came the voice from behind the laptop, but she sounded more amused than angry.

Yumi blinked at that. Since when did her plainness qualify as an advantage to recruiting prospective members? And what was with the _Yumi-chin_ from Kanbara? Her friend was picking up weird habits from their president again. She wanted to sigh again, and it was hardly the first time she felt that way ever since joining the club.

She wondered exactly how the club functioned before they joined last year, and had a sinking suspicion that it was much like how they were right now. Aki had never explained to them why she joined the Mahjong Club, but something told Yumi that she was probably blackmailed into joining it against her will by a good friend or a relative from a higher year, and they all graduated, leaving her the sole member before the two of them joined last year. It wasn't an ideal situation if they wanted to enter tournaments, which Yumi wanted very much to do, even if the other two were a little ambivalent about competing. Well, they did have fun, at least.

"All right," Yumi agreed, "but you're coming with me. We can start at the spots where you put the posters to see if anyone was interested enough to read them, and you're also better at talking to people."

"I don't know about that," Kanbara shrugged. "You're a pretty motivational speaker when you want to be, Yumi-chin. Weren't you almost voted into one of the lead roles of last year's play?"

"W-We need to focus on the matter at hand. The first years should be at their break time by now," she said hurriedly, trying not to give in to the urge to hide behind her hands in embarrassment at the memory. That incident was all because Kanbara thought it was a good idea to appoint Yumi as one of the leaders during one of their mock court trials for government class. If only she wasn't friends with the class representative then, none of their classmates would have got it into their heads that she could act.

"We're off then, president," Kanbara waved.

"See ya."

As Yumi reached for the door handle with her friend two paces behind her, she was alert enough to notice that there was an erratic-moving shadow on the other side of the door and swiftly moved out of its opening arc. She could hear Kanbara stop short behind her, making a confused sound as the door opened to reveal an earnest-looking girl that she had never seen before. Her eyes had a fiercely determined gleam to them, but the rest of her was fairly typical. Black hair in a ponytail framed her brown eyes. She seemed to be out of breath.

"Is... Is this the Mahjong Club?" She asked, breathing heavily.

The rest of the room stared at her, and Yumi was reminded vividly of her first meeting with Kanbara. She hoped this girl wouldn't do anything strange, but knowing her luck lately, it was probably better not to have any expectations.

"Yes," she confirmed steadily. "You may want to take a seat. Kanbara, grab some water for her," Yumi ordered, knowing that she should take charge if they wanted any chance of convincing this girl to join. She wasn't very good with people, this was true, but she heard enough stories from her father to understand how to deal with a distressed girl who was clearly in need of some kind of assistance.

"Got it," her friend replied, dashing away.

When the girl sat down and her breathing slowed, Yumi took a seat nearby. Close enough to comfort, but far enough to give her space; that was the general rule of thumb.

"What can we help you with? We'll do what we can," Yumi offered, injecting a bit of understanding into her voice. She didn't promise anything, but those words were the reassuring type, and they geenrally worked. Yes, she was ripping off her father's techniques for dealing with distressed victims for a clearly less serious problem, but they needed more members to compete in the tournament. She only had two more years left, and with Aki gone next year, that'd mean they'd need even more people to replace her. She had to make this chance count.

"Please teach me how to play mahjong!" The girl suddenly erupted. Yumi blinked and Aki raised an eyebrow from over her laptop, but otherwise the two remained silent, waiting for her to continue.

"I-I'm not very good," she said in a more normal voice, suddenly self-conscious, "but I'll work hard, and do everything I can to get better! I have to beat him!"

Yumi was a little curious now, but it was probably just teenage pride speaking after being defeated in a game of mahjong. She was relieved it wasn't something more serious, like one of their families needing to contact them for an emergency, even though logically speaking, the school would use the intercom speakers to call them into the office for that.

"Don't worry," she said reassuringly. "We'll teach you everything you need to know. We're planning to compete in the prefectural team tournament this summer if we can gather enough members. It'd be great to have you with us. I'm Kajiki Yumi, a second year."

"Tsuyama Mutsuki, first year," the girl introduced herself formally, her composure apparently recovered. "I'm sorry for that just now. My brother is just really frustrating when he plays."

"Heh. I know exactly what you mean," the president smirked. "I'm Kumiyama Aki, third year, club president. Just let Yumi-chin take care of you right now. I'm a bit busy."

"I brought back some melon juice," Kanbara announced, returning with a few juice boxes from one of the school vending machines. "They'll make you feel better than water would."

"Thank you, sempai," Mutsuki said, accepting the offered juice box gratefully.

The redhead blinked as dawning comprehension filled her face. "Ah, you probably all introduced yourselves. I'm Kanbara Satomi, second year."

Mutsuki stood and bowed shortly. "Tsuyama Mutsuki, first year. I'll be in your care from now on."

"Glad to have you on board," Kanbara grinned.

"Now, we just have to think up a suitable name for her..." Aki mused absentmindedly, already sipping on one of the juice boxes. Yumi hadn't even seen her move out of her chair.

The purple-haired girl leaned back and exhaled. The new girl seemed normal enough after her initial entrance. At least her motivation seemed proper, and she looked serious enough to stay in the club even if she managed to beat her brother. Now they only needed one more player, preferably a good one. She'd started collecting data from last year on all of the competing schools, and their records were more than a little unbelievable. There was only so much she could do to compensate for their lack of raw talent.

"Looks like we only need one more," her friend commented.

Yumi nodded, already trying to gauge Mutsuki's skill by her looks and mannerisms alone. It wasn't working very well. Maybe she needed to play against more real life opponents. Their lack of members had forced them to play online more often than not.

"Are we sure we don't want to try some three-player mahjong, just to let Mutsuki-chan try it out?" Kanbara suggested hopefully.

"I GOT IT!" Aki roared, surging from her chair. "You're Mu-ki!" Aki added more calmly, "And no, Mi-tan. I won't let you scare off our new club member with that. Anyway, I'm off to print the posters and hang them up. You can spend the rest of the day doing whatever you want. We upperclassmen have today free," she explained helpfully to the first year.

Mutsuki stared as their president danced away with her laptop in hand, repeating her new nickname in bemusement. Yumi wanted to sigh. Again.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** I won't even try to replicate Momo's verbal tic (~su). Let's just pretend it's there, shall we?

* * *

Spring had arrived and it was almost time for the cheery blossom viewings. The weather was still slightly too cold for most people to be outside casually, but Yumi was at her usual place on the school's rooftop. She liked the smell of the brisk air and the wind playing with the edges of her hair and clothes. She had never understood why, but it always gave her a sense of nostalgia. She'd never admit it to anyone, but she loved nostalgic things. It made her feel as if she belonged there, wherever "there" was at the time.

Yumi sighed and looked up at the darkening afternoon sky pensively. She was laid out on her back with one arm tucked behind her head, and the other playing absentmindedly with Momo's hair. The younger girl made a contented sound and snuggled closer; possibly for warmth, but that was unlikely.

"I'm graduating tomorrow," Yumi said simply.

She wasn't sure who she was talking to, really. She frowned slightly at the sky as she mulled over all the things that would change once tomorrow ended. It was hardly a new exercise, and she knew she was worrying needlessly. Her easygoing high school days were ending, and that was that.

It was easy to pretend that's all there was to it, when it was clear that wasn't the case at all. The reason was lying right next to her, right underneath her fingertips. It was probably the last time they would be alone together like this. She should take advantage of it, but she hated forcing things just to fit the occasion. Wasn't that also another kind of formality? Their relationship was nothing like that, and there was no reason for that to change now. Especially not now.

Yumi bent her neck slightly to plant a light kiss on Momo's forehead. She felt the girl tighten her grip around her sides and was met with green eyes that looked up wistfully.

"I'll miss you, sempai."

It was a simple statement of fact. No pleading for her to attend in a university nearby, or to keep in contact. Just mere acceptance of everything and a willingness to let it go. For some reason, that hurt her the most, even though she preferred it that way. Even if she wasn't going to change the future that she had planned for herself years ago, it would have been nice for the other girl to at least think she might. It was unfair of her to feel that way, but maybe she still had some growing up to do. It was funny when she realized that she used to think she was just as mature as any adult merely three years ago, but now she felt smaller than ever.

"Same," she responded with a small smile.

Why couldn't they try for a long-distance relationship? Kanbara had asked her that once, and she shook her head, saying it wouldn't work out. The other girl knew better than to ask for an explanation when it was clear she wasn't planning on giving one. Asking more than once wouldn't do any good, either. Why not, indeed?

A better question in the first place would be why? Neither of them would benefit in the long run. It would be distracting for both of them, especially in Momo's case. The girl was largely apathetic to begin with, not unlike herself when she was her age, and she didn't need even more of a reason to ignore her studies. It was fine up until now, as Yumi had been keeping watch over her, but in a way, relationships could also be called obsessions, and neither of them needed that. Momo would be entering her second year of high school, and she needed to have a strong academic record when she entered her third year, otherwise she'd be scrambling to raise her grades while simultaneously studying for university entrance exams – assuming the girl even wanted to study to begin with.

It could be argued that if they stayed in touch, they'd be able to support each other and do their best, unwilling to let the other girl become disappointed, but there were too many things that one can hide when you don't see each other often, and trust was also a large issue. It wasn't even about infidelity, but Yumi herself had a bad habit of thinking the worst of people and trying to second-guess them. She was aware of it, and it wasn't as bad as before, but long-distance relationships, whether platonic or no, tended to bring out the worst in people. It was better just to stop things here and move on.

So was she doing this all for Momo's sake? Absolutely not. She was also aware of how obsessive their relationship could be considered. It wasn't something that society would look favorably upon once she graduated, and the longer she indulged in it, the harder it would be for her to stop herself later on down the line. She had promised herself never to let her emotions take control of her sensibility, and sacrificing her future political career just for a teenage romance was beyond absurd when viewed objectively. It wasn't that she was afraid of hardship; far from it. If that were the case, she wouldn't be stopping things now. Unfortunately, Japan wasn't as open-minded of these things as the western world was, and that was a reality she couldn't ignore. If it was just a casual social issue, she wouldn't care, but this would affect her in every aspect of her life, never mind her family. What would happen to her father? He'd lose respect and credibility, and that was the one thing she could not allow.

No, things were best this way. Momo would be able to find someone more suitable with her gone, and Yumi would be able to move forward, helping to shape the nation into a fairer and safer place for everyone. An idealism wrapped in reality. Well, perhaps that was exactly the type of person she was.

Momo suddenly moved so that she straddled the older girl's hips. Yumi blinked as green eyes leaned down to stare seriously at her face, as if searching for something, before closing her eyes and nodding to herself.

The third year parted her lips to ask what was wrong, but was swiftly cut off with a kiss. Her eyes slid shut as she responded slowly, savoring what could be their last moment together like this. She recognized the sound of the other girl's hands heavily landing on the cement on either side of her head, but that felt distant compared to what she was feeling at the pit of her stomach. It was like a dull hunger that needed to be fed, and she was doing all that she could to sate it. The back of her mind tried to remind her of public decency as her hands grasped at the body above her.

Suddenly, it wasn't very cold at all. On the contrary, it seemed as if they had too many clothes on. Her fingers tried to remember how to unbutton the clothes in front of them. It was difficult to concentrate, especially as Momo had started to move down onto her neck, doing wonderful, oh so _won__derful_ things to it with that delicate mouth of hers. It felt as if she was slowly drowning in a sea of pleasure and heat. She struggled to regain control of her senses as she realized something.

"M-Momo..." she called out weakly, her face flushed. "Not my ne-Ah! Tomorrow-!"

She was cut off again with a kiss and a mischievous grin which quickly disappeared beneath a curtain of black hair.

"Don't worry, sempai. I have other places in mind."

She gave Yumi's collarbone a lick before diving lower. Wait, when was her shirt unbuttoned? Come to think of it, what about her tie and blazer? She had completely lost control of the situation, and it had felt so good that she didn't even notice it. It was time to switch the tables. If the other girl wanted to leave her mark, then why shouldn't she do the same?

Yumi propped herself on an elbow and brought up a knee in order to stabilize herself. She raised an eyebrow as it hit flesh and the girl above her trembled, stopping her ministrations. Green eyes looked up at her, pleading.

Voices could be heard below them and the door slammed opened soon afterwards. The two girls quickly re-arranged themselves. Well, Yumi did, anyway. Momo was less concerned, as few people ever noticed her to begin with. It would look strange if anyone saw Yumi alone and somewhat undressed.

"Sempai, I thought you'd said they'd be here?" One of the voices below said.

"Wahaha. They are, they are. Just give them a moment."

Ah, it was Kanbara and Mutsuki. It could have been worse.

Yumi gave her tie one last pull and dropped down onto the pavement below. As she looked up, she saw Momo did the same. The younger girl smiled at her as she slipped a hand in her own. It seemed she didn't mind being interrupted.

"Hey, Yumi-chin," Kanbara greeted, turning around at the sound of feet landing behind them. "The food's here, and Kaori just came back with the cakes."

Yumi nodded. "Good. We'll be there shortly."

Mutsuki stepped forward with a serious look on her face. "Uhm, congratulations on graduating, sempai. I might not be able to say it to you tomorrow, so..."

She felt Momo squeeze her hand at the word _graduating_, and she squeezed back. No use worrying about it. Living in the present wasn't such bad philosophy. At least there were no regrets. It could be worse.

"Thank you."


	6. Chapter 6

**06. The Other Side

* * *

**Yumi kept an eye on the afternoon sky as she walked through the student-filled streets. The forecast for today was supposed to be clear with no chance of rain, but judging by the look of those low-hanging clouds, she wasn't so sure about that. She'd like to get home before she had the chance to find out, but at this time of year, it was hard to get through these streets at any reasonable pace. Well, reasonable for her, anyway. She couldn't speak for the rest of the population who seemed to enjoy walking as if their legs had atrophied, but then, maybe she was just strange to begin with.

Ah, hold on, was that a book store? It looked like some of the psychology books were on sale. Yumi paused as she debated on whether or not she should go inside and take a look. A part of her still itched to take apart the human mind and study it, putting it back together the way she saw fit. Especially when it came to criminal psychology. She remembered how her parents had worried for a time when she had become obsessed with criminal psychology. She couldn't blame them. On the one hand, it was fascinating to see what shaped and motivated these people, and on the other it was a struggle to not cross the line into becoming a criminal herself. After all, wouldn't you like to prove that you could succeed where these mastermind criminals failed? But that obsession faded quickly enough, even if she still held a certain fondness for it. Maybe she should have studied psychology instead.

Yumi looked up from her musings and smiled slightly into the glass. It wasn't like her to reminisce out in public. She blinked, startled, as her reflection raised an eyebrow at her. Yumi relaxed as she realized it was another person on the other side of the glass. They probably thought her odd for making faces at herself. She tilted her head slightly in an apology and started to turn away before something about the person's face tugged at her memory. Where had she seen those glinting eyes before?

The person (a girl, she noticed, about her own age) looked aside for a moment, presumably to talk to someone behind her, before turning back with a wink. She signaled for Yumi to wait for her outside, which was answered with a bewildered nod.

The strategist furrowed her brows as she scanned her memories. Was it at a tournament? It couldn't have been any of the more recent ones, as no one with a memorable face had attended. They all were pretty serious during the games, nothing like her first and last high school tournament.

The high school tournament! It was Kiyosumi's club president, Takei. Takei... Misa? No, Hisa. Did she attend university in this city? If so, then she was probably buying some textbooks. Yumi had already bought hers weeks ago once her classes were posted.

She heard a bell ring from inside the book store as its door opened. Hisa was predictably there, while her hands were unpredictably empty. She wore her customary smirk and raised a hand in greeting. It seemed that the years hadn't changed her much, but then, they were still young.

"Yo. You looked pretty serious there," Hisa commented by way of a greeting.

"It's been a while," Yumi replied, sidestepping the implied question.

The redhead nodded, acknowledging that the topic wasn't open for discussion. "Two years, right?"

"Nearly. You have a good memory."

"I try," Hisa shrugged. "Hey, there's a nice cake shop nearby. Think you can spare some time to sit and catch up?"

Yumi smiled a little in amusement. "You make it sound as if I'm too busy."

"Well, you seemed to beat yourself up after catching yourself doing some window shopping. What else am I supposed to think?"

"That's true," she agreed ruefully. "I'm free for the moment, but I'm worried that it might rain soon."

The sky rumbled overhead, almost as if on cue. They both glanced upwards at the clouds, which seemed to have increased their speed of movement since the last time Yumi checked.

"Then it'll be a good excuse to head indoors for some coffee and cake," Hisa reasoned with a grin. "If it rains, we'll be nice and warm inside the shop while it pours on the streets."

"Ah."

It'd be more rational for her to take a rain check and meet up with the girl on another day. If it started to rain there was no telling when it'd stop. Then again, if she said so, it'd be quite rude, and there was no reason for her to be uncivil. Better to admit defeat on this. Perhaps the girl had planned it this way, but with her, it was hard to tell.

"You make a good point," Yumi conceded. "Please lead the way."

"My pleasure. It's on the next street over," she replied, motioning for Yumi to start walking in the opposite direction.

"This is the first time I've heard of a cake shop around here."

Hisa nodded in front of her, as if she expected the implied question. "It just opened recently. A friend of mine helps out there."

"I see. Do you come by often?" Yumi asked, trying to indirectly find out what the other girl was doing here.

The look that was shot over the redhead's shoulder showed that she knew exactly what the strategist was trying to do, however. It was amused, but even so, Yumi had the grace to look slightly embarrassed.

"I didn't want to pry," she said by way of explanation.

"After what you just asked, that sounds unlikely, but I don't mind," Hisa replied wryly. "I'm curious about you, too."

"Ah."

That was twice now. Soon Hisa would start to think she was incapable of speaking properly. Yumi sighed as she carefully followed the redhead through the crowds. There was something about her that was magnetically appealing. Was it her confidence? No, that wasn't it. Yumi herself had plenty of that, and she could safely say that she didn't make heads turn as often as Hisa did. Was it a combination of a laidback, yet knowing, personality? Perhaps. There was definitely something interesting about the way she handled herself and those around her. Yumi wouldn't necessarily call it condescension or apathy, but there was a certain amount of distance she put between herself and others. Yet, when she spoke to you, it was as if she recognized you on an entirely different level. She would almost call it flattery, except none of the girl's words indicated anything of the sort. It was all body language. How very mysterious, and nearly enviable. It was an ability that Yumi would find very useful in the coming years.

As the two turned to the next street over, Yumi's eyes caught on a brightly lit shop with a large painting of a moist-looking cake on the window. That could be the place, except she had never been on this street before. It was known to the students of the area as a good place to grab a bite to eat, since there were more than a few restaurants here. Yumi didn't see the need to eat out when it was cheaper to cook herself, and usually quicker, too. Satomi didn't care either way, so it wasn't like the other girl would know much about this area, either.

A few seconds later, they stopped in front of it. Hisa spoke as she reached for the door.

"Here we are. Ladies first."

Yumi stopped her and took the handle herself, stepping aside to let the redhead go through first.

"Indeed."

The former Kiyosumi leader laughed as the sky rumbled darkly above them. The humidity was rising and she could feel the air growing thick. She was glad when the other girl did not argue and went inside quickly, with Yumi following her soon afterwards. The aromatic smell of teas and coffees assaulted her nose, and beneath it was the scent of sugar that was almost edible. The shop was moderately full, but not busy enough for the staff to be too rushed. It looked like they had come at a good time.

The girl at the counter smiled at them as they walked up, and gave Hisa a small wave. They seemed to know each other.

"Hello. Mako-sempai's not here today, so I can't give you your special discount," the girl said apologetically.

Hisa pretended to look offended. "I can't come by and visit like a regular customer? Just what kind of person do you think I am?"

"A liar, a flirt, a swindler, and a narcissist," she replied without batting an eye. Yumi noticed that the name tag on her shirt read, 'Sara'. A foreigner, perhaps?

"Ouch, but I resent being called a narcissist," Hisa objected with a grin.

"I find it more worrying that you do not deny the other charges," Yumi added calmly from behind her.

"Et tu, Brutus? And here I was going to treat you to one of their best cakes..."

"Trying to add another person to your harem, Hisa-san? She doesn't look like the type to let you," Sara noted with a playful wink to Yumi.

"There are many benefits to being a part of my harem, didn't you know? You should join, too," the redhead teased as she scanned the glass case that held the desserts.

"No thanks. I have my hands full as it is. So, what will it be?"

"A slice of tiramisu, please," Yumi ordered, having made up her mind long ago while the two were bantering.

"Italian, huh? Sounds fancy," Hisa commented. "I'll have a crème caramel."

"Got it," Sara nodded. "Please wait a moment."

She disappeared for a few minutes before coming back with the two desserts.

"Did you want anything to drink? I'll bring them over to you once you pick a table."

"Black tea will be fine," Yumi ordered first again.

"In that case, I'll just have black coffee."

"Coming right up. Please sit wherever you want. I'll come and find you," Sara replied with a smile.

They took their plates and sat down at one of the tables next to the big window. Yumi looked at her tiramisu suspiciously, wondering what they used to make it. She was fairly bad when it came to making desserts, so she couldn't help but feel a little jealous whenever she saw someone properly make them. There must be some sort of secret that she was missing out on.

"Black tea, was it?" Hisa noted. "I thought you were the type to order coffee and have it black."

"I'm not very good with coffee," Yumi admitted. "I take it that you're quite the opposite?"

The redhead grinned. "No idea. I just thought it'd make a nice contrast to what you ordered."

Yumi blinked. Ah. It wasn't flattery that the other girl excelled at; it was focus. She made you feel as if you were the only one that existed to her at that moment. She sucked you in and gave the illusion that you were important to her. Well, perhaps that was uncharitable. Maybe she did value the people that she talked to, but she doubted that the effects she had were intentional. Then again, maybe they were. It was hardly disadvantageous for her to behave in that manner.

"Do you enjoy complementing things?" She asked curiously.

"Sometimes," Hisa answered vaguely.

The mood seemed to have changed, and she noticed that the other girl was looking out the window absentmindedly. She was surprised that Hisa had let her guard down in front of her so quickly. Then again, it was not exactly normal for people their age to have their guard up at all times, was it? They weren't exactly strangers, either.

Yumi tried a piece of her dessert as she waited for Hisa to pick up the conversation again. If she tried to start a new topic, it would sound forced and the other girl would only follow it out of politeness rather than real interest, which would defeat the purpose of their meeting. She, however, was feeling more curious than polite, and so did not mind waiting. The tiramisu was quite good. It would be a waste for her to not savor it, after all.

"I've been attending university here in this area, to answer your question," the redhead stated. "Though you probably already knew that, since you don't look surprised."

Yumi nodded, glad for the confirmation. "I would say the same to you, except that would be redundant."

Hisa smirked. "True. What are you studying? Not psychology, right?"

"Ah, you saw that. No, I'm in Government and Politics. Yourself?"

"Law, although lately I'm wondering if I should change my concentration," she admitted thoughtfully.

"So have I," Yumi responded.

Similar, yet so far apart. Yumi wondered what it would have been like to attend the same school as this girl. It would have felt challenging, probably. Much more academically interesting than what she had actually experienced. Well, things were certainly better now in university, but she couldn't help but feel an inkling of regret for what could have been. Yet, there was Momo and the Mahjong Club, so it wasn't all that bad. Not all that bad, partly enjoyable, but it didn't feel enough. She found that the past had been bothering her more and more lately. She wondered if the other girl felt the same way.

"Here are your drinks!" Sara appeared with a smile and a tray with two mugs.

The two thanked her. They took their respective hot drinks in their hands and looked into the liquid. Their eyes met when they glanced upwards and they realized they were unconsciously mimicking each other. They shared an embarrassed smile.

"It's strange when you realize that what you want to do and what you need to do can be two different things," Yumi ventured.

Hisa nodded in agreement. "Right. That's it, exactly. And you can never tell whether you're doing the right thing or not. You can't trust yourself because humans are inherently selfish, and you can't trust others because of the exact same problem."

The Tsuruga graduate chuckled for the first time in a long while. "Exactly."

Echoing each other's words and thoughts... what an odd experience.

"And then there's the problem of being women," Hisa trailed off with a wink.

Yumi caught on to the implication of marriage immediately. "I'm lucky enough that my parents haven't done anything about it."

"Really? They sound like understanding parents. Government and Politics isn't exactly a normal area of study for women, either," she commented.

"Neither is Law," Yumi replied.

"Ah, but you're not expected to marry someone after you graduate."

"I'm not so sure about that," she said uncertainly.

Yumi had honestly never considered that possibility. What if she received a call one day from her parents telling her that they had set up a meeting with a potential husband for her? She was sure they wouldn't pick anyone who would be opposed to her joining politics, but even so, it was a frightening thought. What if he held her back? There were also certain expectations that came with becoming a wife. When would she find the time?

"Sorry, I didn't realize I was grilling you there. I guess I'm just a little tense," Hisa said apologetically, taking a sip of her coffee. She blanched at the taste. Yumi smiled slightly at the sight. It was like a little kid trying to be an adult and failing miserably.

"Would you like some of my tea?" Yumi offered.

"No, that's fine," Hisa waved her off. "They say you'll have to get used to drinking coffee if you want to be successful with the Americans."

"In that case, we should switch anyway, as I need practice with that," she reasoned, half-jokingly.

Hisa raised an amused eyebrow. "You're not worried about indirect kisses?"

Yumi sighed, partly in amusement, partly in exasperation. Just how old was this girl, really? One minute she was as serious as a philosophy professor, and the next she was worrying over silly things.

"Not at all."

"You sound like you've had experience," the other girl implied with a smirk.

"You may say that," Yumi replied noncommittally, refusing to take the bait.

"You're terribly mysterious. Even after sitting down with you, I can't get a read on you at all. You've changed since high school," Hisa noted, staring at her intently.

"Is that so? I think it would be fair to say the same of you. You're a little more... focused now, it seems."

The redhead smirked at that. "Don't make it sound like I was slacking back then."

Yumi raised an eyebrow playfully. "Did I say that?"

Hisa leaned back casually. "You didn't have to. I know."

"Shooting in the dark won't get you anywhere," Yumi cautioned here, knowing the girl was just trying to catch her off-balance.

The Kiyosumi graduate switched tactics. "You've definitely been in a relationship, though, and probably a passionate one at that. You don't seem cynical or apathetic enough to have been disappointed by it, and judging by how relaxed you are, it was probably a girl. If it was a guy, you'd be more expectant about the idea of marriage."

She took a sip of her black tea and regarded the girl in front of her with amusement. She couldn't say Hisa was wrong, but she didn't want to give her the upper hand just yet. This was starting to get interesting, and she wasn't exactly ashamed of Momo, so she had no anxiety to try and hide.

"Going by that logic, I would say that you're even more experienced than the theoretical me you've painted. You almost sound hateful of men, although I doubt it's from an actual relationship. You're not so petty as to hold grudges over that. However, you are indeed rather cynical, and seem almost to be avoiding relationships."

The edge of Hisa's smirk twitched slightly as she looked down into her coffee. "You're holding back."

"I don't need an enemy," Yumi implicitly agreed. She did hold back some of her theories, such as the possibility that Hisa was hurt by someone she cared about and was shutting herself away. Her reaction, however slight, even proved that what she had guessed was correct. Not that wasn't any of her business. Furthermore, she was feeling slightly irritated by how the redhead insinuated that being in a relationship with another female was something scandalous.

"How cold and detached you are. It must be convenient."

It was clear the other girl's pride was injured for having been read so easily. Maybe they weren't so similar after all. Yumi disliked losing herself to her emotions, but then, she couldn't say her life was as exciting as those who did. She tried not to hold it against her. After all, it was nice to have an intelligent acquaintance, or even a friend.

"Even so, you seem to be enjoying life. It's hardly something to be jealous of."

Hisa glanced up from her mug with forced cheerfulness. "Hey now, don't give me that pitying tone. You might need me one day in a lawsuit."

Yumi tilted her head slightly. "Let's hope it never comes to that."

They stopped talking then, choosing instead to focus on their drinks and the streets outside. Their plates had been cleaned long ago. Yumi was unsurprised to find that it was currently raining. What happened to the days when she used to love the rain? Maybe she never realized just how inconvenient it was back then. She was slowly turning into one of those busy people that she used to detest so much. Stop and enjoy what you have, she had wanted to say to other people. Stop rushing around so much and open your eyes. Maybe she had closed her eyes ever since entering university. Even talking with Momo these days felt forced and uneasy.

"It sounds as if things have been rough for you lately," she spoke up, not wanting to dwell on herself for too long.

"It's probably just the last of my teenage hormones acting up. We're at that age, right?" Hisa asked with a rueful grin, having calmed down.

"Would it be so bad just to follow them?" Yumi suggested hesitantly. It was rare for her to support such impulsive decisions, but from her own experience, living in the present wasn't so bad. Her high school days were fairly enjoyable, after all.

"_Receiving advice from strange places_, is it? I seem to be getting that a lot," the redhead mused out loud.

"Your pride is probably getting in the way," she hypothesized.

Hisa raised an amused eyebrow. "Should I be offended?"

Yumi shook her head. "No. I'm speaking from experience."

"You seem to have a lot of that."

"Yet I get the feeling that you'll be leading a much more interesting life than I ever will," she responded with a smile.

Hisa laughed. "I don't know. Normal is good enough for me, I think."

Yumi nodded. "I can't disagree with that."


End file.
